Baybayin Characters: The 3 Vowels and 14 Consonants Explained
Updated: Oct 5
Baybayin has 17 base characters: 3 vowels and 14 consonants. With two small marks, the kudlit and the virama, those 17 shapes can spell any Tagalog word.
How many letters does Baybayin have?
The classic answer is 17. Some charts show more, because they add separate shapes for ra, or modern additions for sounds like f and v. Historically, da and ra shared one character, and there was no separate letter for c, f, j, q, v, x or z.
The vowels
ᜀ a
ᜁ e / i: one character for both sounds
ᜂ o / u: one character for both sounds
The consonants
ᜃ ka, ᜄ ga, ᜅ nga, ᜆ ta, ᜇ da/ra, ᜈ na, ᜉ pa, ᜊ ba, ᜋ ma, ᜌ ya, ᜎ la, ᜏ wa, ᜐ sa, ᜑ ha.
Tips to remember the shapes
Learn them in families. Ka, ga and nga are next to each other in most charts, so practice them together.
Draw them big first. Tracing a large character teaches the stroke order your hand will remember.
Write words you love. Your name, your family's hometown, or a word like mahal sticks better than a random drill.
Practice daily for 17 days, one new character a day.
Characters plus marks
Kudlit above: e or i (ᜃᜒ ki/ke).
Kudlit below: o or u (ᜃᜓ ku/ko).
Virama: no vowel (ᜃ᜔ k). See our virama guide.
Next steps
Trace every character on the Practice Writing page, keep our Baybayin chart handy, and try our step-by-step lesson on how to write the 17 characters.
Rep the characters too: the Baybayin Character Tee puts all of them on one shirt.
Learn it live, then wear it
The fastest way to really learn Baybayin is with a teacher and a group. In the Baybayin Workshop you will learn all 17 characters, the kudlit and the virama, and leave able to write your own name and the names of your family.
Baybayin Character Hoodie: all the characters on one hoodie
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